Playing God

[Avatar]

Anyway, as far as playing God goes, it seems to me that this topic is marked as playing God in the modern era only because it's the current issue. What about tapping into the power of lightning? Or flying in the air? Or distributing death, restoring life into a recently dead body? We are all natural creations. If there is a God that created us, and we have the capacity to act in our world, I can't imagine he did not intend for that possibility.

A good point, especially in consideration of the Heinlein quote made by someone (You? The Dreaming?) in another thread, suggesting that we are as natural as anything on the face of the earth.

I once read that if we have come so far as to create as god creates, surely it is time for us to learn the justice, mercy and compassion of a god.

--Avatar

[ZefaLefeLaH]

Okay, so here's an alternate reality for you.

Kerry was elected president in 2004. He took office in 2005, immediately set up stem cell research among his many other promises that he tried his best to keep. Stem cell research became a huge health benefit for millions of people in the USA and in the world. Tens of thousands of people were able to walk again. We even found ways to grow arms and legs. It was an amazing success story for all those who were stricken with birth defects or had accidents which causes paralysis or required amputation. Stem cell research was touted as the glory of the 21st century.

Of course, you'll have to overlook and forgive the abortion factories that sprang up. People were paid to become pregnant and have a child come close enough to term for stem-cell farming. But hey, if you disregard the 44 million babies that were "farmed" through the factories then it's okay isn't it?!??


I guess if this is the way you people feel, don't be surprised when you find out what's in those green crackers you'll be getting from the Wednesday foodlines.

[The Dreaming]

I guess if this is the way you people feel, don't be surprised when you find out what's in those green crackers you'll be getting from the Wednesday foodlines.

Nice reference. However, I think it's a little foolish to believe that anything would change at all with some other A$$hole holding our highest office.

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

Wow Zef. just Wow. d00d, you n33d a radio show.

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

Hold on, I need to reiterate.... wow d00d. 44 million babies, totally. You n33333d a radio show. Pronto.

[duchess of malfi]

When some couples get treated for infertility, they can sometimes have many fertilized eggs left over, which were not needed by the couple for implantation. As it stands, these eggs are left in a freezer for years, and sometimes are simply tossed out or destroyed. Why can't these eggs be used for stem cell research if the couple decides to donate then? No abortions of babies actually in wombs that way?

[ZefaLefeLaH]

Hold on, I need to reiterate.... wow d00d. 44 million babies, totally. You n33333d a radio show. Pronto.

You're starting to get on my nerves child.


(btw: L337 speech be dead. Learn some new way to express yourself that's in fashion & not out of fashion. While you're at it go learn some respect).

[ZefaLefeLaH]

When some couples get treated for infertility, they can sometimes have many fertilized eggs left over, which were not needed by the couple for implantation. As it stands, these eggs are left in a freezer for years, and sometimes are simply tossed out or destroyed. Why can't these eggs be used for stem cell research if the couple decides to donate then? No abortions of babies actually in wombs that way?

Because you can't get stem cells from an egg. An egg is just one cell. It's got DNA though...


Think of the egg as a seed. As the plant grows, it makes a stem & from that stem all information is given to create the entire mature plant. If you could take stem cells from a good young plant & put them in a damaged broken plant, the hope is that you could help the damaged broken plant to "remember" its data and rebuild it. Unfortunately, the damaged broken plant is already older, so you have to use a whole lot of little baby plants to fix it.



I guess I wouldn't have a problem with this at all if they could find a way to clone stem cells in a petri dish.

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

Sorry Zef, but your total fanaticism struck me speechless and left me without either sentance structure or the full use of the english language.
Also, that last post sounded like some sort of a threat. I can almost imagine your smoldering eyes and deep, angry voice. "You're starting to annoy me, Child".
That's interesting, because that's also the face that I tend to stereotypically put onto people who hold your opinions. It's so dissapointing to find ones stereotypes to be accurate, but I suppose that's how stereotypes come to be in the first place....

Ok, that's enough of this, it was immature of me to insult you in the first place, I apologize, and if your response post is flaming, I'll *graciously* ignore it in favor of more intellectual discourse.

Sorry about the l337 by the way. I've been reading MegaTokyo, an online comic that uses it in a lot of jokes. I've never used it before today.

[ZefaLefeLaH]

Sorry Zef, but your total fanaticism struck me speechless and left me without either sentance structure or the full use of the english language.

Ok, that's enough of this, it was immature of me to insult you in the first place, I apologize, and if your response post is flaming, I'll *graciously* ignore it in favor of more intellectual discourse.

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

Well, let's hope they do find a way to do it in a petri dish... hell, we've been able to do everything else, including things that have seemed much more complicated. If we could do that, we could circumvent the whole debate, or at least a major part of it.

Heck, as long as we're talking about it, why don't we just learn how to 'manufacture' stem cells synthetically. Everything we do now was impossible 20 years ago, who knows what we'll be able to do in another two decades.

[Avatar]

Everything we do now was impossible 20 years ago, who knows what we'll be able to do in another two decades.

Well said.

--A

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

SPEAKING of playing god, I just heard on NPR that through a process called RNA interferance, basically a way to remove specific genes, we've been able to take a brownworm that has a full lifespan of 14 days and extend that to 150 days.

Egads.

[Avatar]

While I applaud the effort and the result, I can't help feeling that the implications are a bit frightening though.

Imagine this being carried over to humans? We think we have a population problem now, what about when everybody lives for 150 years?

Not to mention that chances are, it'll remain the preserve of the rich and privelidged. The rich will get older and the poor will die. How easily could this become grounds for a revolution of sorts?

--A

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

That's a valid fear, but we aren't talking about 150 Years.


The worms lived 14 days naturally, after the RNAI procedure, they lived 150+ days.

That's over a factor of 10.

Why don't we try imagining people living to about age 1000.
Before hearing this report, I never imagined I would be nervous that scientists are going too far.
After thinking about it, I decided this would be a really interesting time to be alive.

The procedure has been mimiced with some success with mice, I believe.... eh heh heh heh.

[Gadget nee Jemcheeta]

Right, and if there IS no revolution, we have a nigh immortal aristocracy based on wealth... talk about OLD money.

[Avatar]

...After thinking about it, I decided this would be a really interesting time to be alive...

That's certainly true. And if I recall, it was an ancient Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times."

We're present at the forefront of a new history. It is being made across the world, even as we speak. The events of our lifetimes will shape the future course of nations for good or for ill.

These are interesting times.

--Avatar